Trial and error

Here's the text of a piece I wrote on the trials of Abraham which was hosted on Rabbi Shmuel Phillips's Judaism Reclaimed Facebook group (declaration of interest: Rabbi Phillips is my son). Since it's relevant to this week's Torah reading, I thought I'd post it here too:

Trial and Error 

Parashat Vayera includes two of the most vividly memorable events in Avraham’s life: his argument with God over the fate of the inhabitants of Sodom and the narrative of the Akedah, God’s instruction that Avraham bind his son Yitzchak and sacrifice him as a burnt offering. The Akedah is the only test of Avraham’s that the Torah mentions explicitly. The statement that Abraham was set 10 tests and passed them all is Mishnaic (Avot 5:4). We can ask three questions here: (i) why did God test Avraham; (ii) why does the Torah account for one test when the Mishnah mentions ten and (iii) is Avraham’s negotiation with God over the fate of Sodom not also a test?  

Why should God need to test Avraham at all? The normal function of any test is to obtain a result or outcome that would otherwise be unknown. Its circumstances and methodology should reflect the objective to be achieved: for example the person being tested should be known to have the capacity to pass it and should not know that he is being tested. However, an omniscient God who exists beyond time and who has already selected Abraham for his destined role does not need to test him in order to ascertain information and is in any event already in possession of it. The fact that Abraham was prepared to sacrifice his son was not something Abraham needed to be told either, since the Torah records his unswerving obedience to God’s commands. 

The inference we can draw is therefore that the function of the Akedah was to show us, being Avraham’s physical or metaphorical descendants through Yitzchak, something of the quality, the steadfastness under stress and the deep love for God which the Patriarchs possessed. This demonstration of Abraham’s mettle would also act as a lesson for all subsequent generations as to how we should serve God, with love, fear and complete trust. Rambam appears to take this approach (Moreh Nevuchim 3:24). Significantly, the Hebrew word nisayon (“test”) is related to nes (“banner”), a word that conveys the need to wave a flag, as it were, to make a prominent display of Abraham’s exceptional qualities. 

Why does the Mishnah mention 10 tests when the Torah identifies only one as being such? The answer here lies in the different functions served by the Torah and by the mishnayot of Avot. Avot 5:4 is a short mishnah because, though it mentions Avraham’s successful negotiation of 10 tests, it does not list them. Nor is there any rabbinical consensus as to what they are. If one reads the Torah narrative of Avraham’s life and the midrashic literature that is based upon it (on which many rabbis rely when compiling their lists of 10), it is easy to put together a list approaching 30 events that could fairly be construed as such.  

It is plain that, by not listing the tests, the author of this mishnah was teaching something other than what those tests were. The important part of the mishnah is the statement that Avraham passed them. By concealing their identity the mishnah alludes to the fact that their identity was concealed from Avraham too—and that is where his greatness lies. Where a person knows he or she is being tested, that is no real test.  

Of all the many commentators on the mishnah, Rambam is unique: he is the only one to choose 10 tests from the Torah alone, rather than opting for a blend of Torah and often more exciting tests drawn from midrashic sources. However, neither he nor any other major commentator includes as a test Avraham’s argument with God over the ethical consideration of destroying the righteous together with the wicked in the sinful cities of Sodom and Gemorrah. There is not even any discussion of why it should be omitted. Why should this be so? 

Another mishnah in Avot may provide a hint that leads to a possible answer.  In Avot 5:6 the mishnah repeats a verse from the Torah in which God, with justifiable anger, states that our ancestors tested Him ten times during their sojourn in the desert. This statement admits of the possibility not just of God testing man but of man testing God. When God tests us, it is to teach us a lesson about ourselves, but when we test Him we must be careful to do so leshem shamayim, for the right reasons. Here it is not God testing Avraham but Avraham who is testing God: if He is really the Judge of all the Earth, will He not do justice? God who is on trial, is being tested by the one mortal who has recognised Him in all His glory. God passes the test.